Good weather means you can wear more daring, and therefore shorter, outfits to keep cool in spring. For MANGO’s Spring-Summer 2010 collection, already in stores, mini-dresses are a great choice.

They’re available in many styles and models so you can choose to suit your taste and usual dress style. These five are my favourites.

On-trend floral print is one of your must-have buys at the moment, especially with bright colours like those on the dress in the main photo.

Denim is another major player this spring. Short, strappy and sleeveless.

If you’re going to a party or for cocktails, you’ll need a particular kind of outfit, so a strapless dress could be your saviour! I prefer the blue version to the black one.

If you mix everything mentioned above – florals, vintage blue and the strapless model – you get this wonderful design. One of the best.

And for those of you who like music and mixing black and white, there’s nothing better than this strappy mini-dress, with its piano theme.

As the good weather approaches, sleeves, skirts and dresses are getting shorter. And so are jackets: blazers, cardigans and leather jackets also barely reach your navel.

It was a well-loved famous French designer, sadly now gone, who popularised this design we know so well. Despite the fact that many people find it uncomfortable when jackets don’t reach their waist, cropped jackets are very youthful and are perfect for a time of year when you can really do without excess centimetres on clothes.

One of my favourite suggestions from MANGO for spring-summer 2010 is this striped blazer.

This jacket in smoky grey denim is a fresh and informal option.

Which we rate as highly as this leather jacket.

When it comes to cardigans, this one in floral print is as romantic as they come.

And for evenings, there’s nothing better than this shiny model.

I’d wear this over a metallic mini-dress, rather than a black shirt and pleated skirt; or more informally, with a white shirt and jeans, in a look which is also suitable for daytime.

If there’s one thing that will never go out of fashion it’s the trench coat. It was invented by an Englishman for soldiers fighting in wars to protect themselves from the cold, wind and damp, all at once. And in just a few decades this coat has gone from the frontlines to the stores.

Apart from its history, it’s completely timeless and can be used all year round.

Lined trench coats are for winter, while you can use ones in lighter fabrics in the summer.

Plus, the possibilities are endless: not just the classic camel, but many more colours to suit all tastes.

From completely waterproof versions.

To shorter models.

As well as models with slight variations in detailing, like on the sleeves or others in more unusual colours like red.

The time has now come for international interviews, so let’s start by interviewing Jessie Madrigal, author of Fashion Limbo (one of the most important blogs around) and a pretty regular shopper at MANGO, every time she comes to Spain. Do you want to know what she told us?

How did you start your blog?
I started it when I had a rather boring job that I found depressing, since it really didn’t suit me. My boyfriend encouraged me to do something to do with my dream, which was to write about fashion, and that’s how fashionlimbo.com started.

What do you think about the blogosphere phenomenon?
It’s amazing the influence fashion bloggers have in the fashion world. It’s a different way of keeping up to date on trends, different styles or fashions without having to read VOGUE or follow it religiously. In countries like Spain it’s giving the fashion world a fresh boost.

What are your favourite blogs?
For vintage fashion I read retrochick.co.uk. The Sartorialist is a classic. And Facehunter is another must. For fun I like gofugyourself. I also read several weblogs in Spanish.

Do you normally shop at MANGO?
I go to MANGO far too often. It’s hard not to, especially when I’m visiting Spain, MANGO is my first stop.

Why do you like MANGO?
I love the colours and prints. The collections aren’t at all boring. The party dresses are fantastic. I love the contrast between very feminine stuff and the rocker style jeans and t-shirts usually have. I also have great trouble resisting MANGO handbags.

What does Think Up suggest to you?
For me. Think Up is innovation, a refreshing approach to fashion and creating your own style.

Give us a Think Up idea
Mix a romantic floral dress with a studded belt or a vintage cropped leather jacket with an LBD.

What items do you have a weakness for?
Nice bootcut jeans, well-fitting at the hips. They’re great with heels, All Star sneakers, ballet flats, etc.

What item is a must in your wardrobe this season?
A trench: all brands are bringing out different versions in amazing selections of colour. And clogs for summer. Did you see Alexa Chung in British VOGUE? I love it!

How would you describe your style in a single sentence?
Fashion is there for you to enjoy yourself, and that’s what I’m doing.

Do you have a fashion icon?
Madonna. She’s had some rather extravagant moments, but her collaborations with Gaultier and other designers are legendary. Whatever she wears becomes a trend the following year. She’s the epitome of “fashion forward”. I love her.

Who’s your favourite designer?
I have a weakness for British designers: Westwood, McQueen, Stella…

Who do you think are the best-dressed celebrities just now?
I love Diane Kruger, Alexa Chung, Daisy Lowe, and the only reason I watch Gossip Girl is Blake Lively.

In Think Up | We interview Bartabac, a stylish blogger, Interview with Shopaholic, the blogger addicted to shopping, Interview with Raquel, of gratistotal, one of the most influence bloggers in Spain

Bartabac is one of the best-known members of the Spanish blogosphere. Her real name is Silvia and she’s one of Spain’s most successful bloggers.

Every so often she brings you several street looks well worth noting, so that you can apply them to your own personal style.

Bartabac is an elegant and modern urbanite, and here she explains her Think Up philosophy.

How did you start your blog?

It just happened; under a year ago. I had started reading fashion blogs and was really getting into them. Since I’ve always had a passion for fashion I thought “why not?” and decided to set my own up.

What do you think about the blogosphere phenomenon?

Blogs are becoming more and more important. They’re a fantastic way to become known, communicate and inform. Who knows how they’ll develop and what they’ll become, but just now it looks like they will become the future of communication. It’s great having information you can access instantly.

What are your favourite blogs?

I like each of the blogs on my blogroll for different reasons. Each has its own special touch and personality, but if I had to pick some I’d say WhoWhatWear is great for inspiring trends, the Parisian Pandora has a unique style, and also two street style blogs, AltamiraNYC and The Sartorialist. Plus, my favourite decoration and travel blog, Ahhhlala, is very relaxing.

Do you normally shop at MANGO?

Of course. It’s been part of my usual shopping route for years. I can clearly remember the advertising campaign with Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell, in ’92 I think it was. I was crazy about it, I used my catalogue so much it was all crumpled. Since then I’ve continued to be a loyal customer.

Why do you like MANGO?

Because MANGO brings us the latest trends and makes them affordable. I’ve always been intrigued by the more special and daring shoes, with the “MANGO seal”, and outerwear and accessories like belts, bracelets, which I’m mad about. Just yesterday I bought a very original ring.

What does Think Up suggest to you?

Learning to enjoy clothes and have fun without having to spend too much. Think Up helps you find your style so you can feel good.

Give us a Think Up idea

I love using items out of season, like white dresses, which I think are great for winter, or sandals with socks or ankle boots with bare legs for autumn or spring …

What items do you have a weakness for?

Cotton tops. I’ve always loved them and I wear them with everything all year round. I really value their simplicity, quality and shape. They must have something to make them so flattering and special.

What item is a must in your wardrobe this season?

This season jeggings (a mixture of jeans and leggings) are a must, they’re very versatile. Skirts are also a must, either wide or tulip ones, teamed with sailor t-shirts, which are still as popular as they have been the last few seasons. 80s-influenced stretch clothes, like dresses, short skirts, and wide pleated trousers are also in. But these trends are a bit more “difficult” for everyday.

How would you describe your style in a single sentence?

I love simplicity and having fun with clothes.

Do you have a fashion icon?

Not really.

Who’s your favourite designer?

I’m a faithful follower of Karl Lagerfeld, Isabel Marant, Chloé and Stella McCartney, although every season I find many more thanks to shows.

Who do you think are the best-dressed celebrities just now?

I really like the styles of Diane Kruger, Kate Bosworth and Alexa Chung. I find them simple, elegant and modern.

When we were small we wore nothing else: in the summer we’d call them cycling shorts and in the winter they’d be leggings. We had them in every colour of the rainbow and I’m sure that your favourites, just like mine, were fluorescent or floral ones. Once everyone grew up they were set aside and forgotten. But a couple of years ago designers and stores rescued them from oblivion, and the cotton and lycra items used only for going to the gym made a huge comeback and became known to everyone as leggings.

It was hard getting used to the idea, but we did eventually. We’ve all gone back to them after some complaining. Wearing something that feels almost like pyjamas on the streets is a guilty pleasure that’s hard to resist.

And the final development has been their official change of status to trousers. Now they have pockets, zips, patches and even pleats, which helps you get over the feeling you’re dressed far too informally.

Up until now one of the easiest ways to wear leggings was to wear them as tights (under skirts, trousers or dresses). No more hiding them from now on. It’s time to start seeing them as just another pair of trousers.

They’re no longer so different from skinny trousers. And they’re much more versatile since there are endless possibilities and versions.

My favourites? Lace ones or torn ones.

How brave are you? Which ones will you pick?

As soon as I saw this photo I realised I needed some colours in my wardrobe since as soon as spring starts jackets are one of my staple items. Actually, mine, yours and any celebrity’s …

Here is the new collection of coloured jackets: shorter, longer, thicker, coloured, in basic shades… they’re perfect for keeping warm when wearing a floral look in the first days of spring.

This first photo has four of my favourite pieces: a light floral jacket, in case you don’t want to go straight for patterned dresses but would rather something you could combine with other looks.

The second suggestion is a thicker cardigan, in a basic colour like beige, which you could always wear open: it goes with short skirts, jeans and dresses.

This red one is as chic as they come. Short puff sleeves, two buttons and a very flattering intense colour. You can use it to create contrasts or with low-cut or strapless dresses, now that the weather’s sunnier.

This pearl grey suggestion is very formal. Short sleeves, low-cut neckline and buttons placed lower down so you can see your fashion t-shirts or classic cotton ones when going for an informal style.

This other suggestion is all about white and blue for a complete summery nautical look. White jackets are pretty much staples in a wardrobe and I love the sky blue one with a single button – it’s perfect for wearing with jeans, whatever their colour.

And my last round of favourite jackets. A very light cardigan in earth colours, with fine detail at the neck and long fitted sleeves. It’s a must for summery dresses.

Long jackets with waist-ties are my key items for spring, so I always have a couple of them in my wardrobe, in two shades and different styles to combine, but basically the same.

Longer open jackets with a belt are also basic items for spring and summer nights.

And finally, a short-sleeved one in blue with a wide neckline will be one of the season’s must-haves for its comfort and soft texture.

Perhaps you have a white dress and find it too cold to wear early on in the day? Do you want to create contrasts? Go straight for coloured cardigans and jackets this spring: they’ll be around in the summer, come autumn you’ll still be using them and the thicker ones will almost be like a second skin in the winter.

Scarves, stoles and woollen scarves aren’t just for winter. They’re also part of your spring looks, although the colours are brighter and the fabrics lighter.

Scarves are the perfect accessories for brightening up a style or completely revamping an item that is far too basic. Multi-coloured, striped, printed, fringed, in silk, in cotton… there are endless possibilities… have you seen all the scarves from MANGO’s Spring collection?

It’s important to know how to combine scarves with other accessories or to create a total contrast. You also have to take into account the ways in which they can be worn. Here at THINK UP we have some suggestions for you.

Jennifer Aniston loves scarves. Plus, she knows how to wear them in different ways. You’ll have seen her wearing a fringed pale pink pashmina, either wrapped round her neck once, or covering her shoulder and half-wrapped round.

In another photo you can see Jennifer Aniston with the scarf round her neck, but this time it’s loosely tied in a way that suits the floaty fabric perfectly. Katie Holmes has another way of wearing her scarves, folding them in half and slipping the ends through the loop.

And if you prefer a more informal style, choose cotton scarves like keffiyeh scarves or scarves in ethnic prints. Cameron Diaz wears them over the shoulder while Gemma Ward prefers them bunched up around the neck.

You can also use scarves on your head. Katie Holmes wears one folded over and tied at the nape, with the ends hanging loose. Another option would be to tie these ends to your hair and create a bun.

Have you chosen your MANGO scarf yet? Tell us what your favourite way of wearing it is!

For spring-summer 2010 MANGO has chosen new and up-and-coming faces – the stars of fashion, music or cinema of tomorrow.

You already saw Sophie Auster, daughter of famous writer and film-maker Paul Auster. Well, now it’s the turn of another new signing: Dree Hemingway, great-granddaughter of Ernest Hemingway.

The 22-year-old American, daughter of Mariel Hemingway and Stephen Crisman, has signed with Elite Model Management agency in New York and Independent Models and Ford Models Europe in Paris. She has worked in modelling before, has amazing looks and is set to become a star of the future.

In the presentation of the 2010 Spring-Summer collection at MANGO you can see that denim rules and will be everywhere this spring, and that all the different elements of an outfit, from blazers to shorts, will be in this fabric.

This all-American vintage style combines very distressed parts with more formal elements like rolled-up sleeves and lots of accessories, especially cuffs and crucifixes on long chains around the neck.

Likewise, waistcoats and boleros will also be very popular for the good weather.

Bracelets and cuffs were of the first decorative elements used by women as adornments. You can see some of these ancient pieces at any archaeological museum, with designs you could even wear nowadays.

MANGO’s spring collection brings you some striking jewellery, particularly bracelets and cuffs which in my opinion are basic fashion accessories.

There are several trends. There are attractive and elaborate models featuring large stones incrusted in metal or plastic. This metal bracelet with imitation turquoise stones and the black bracelet with large coloured stones are amazing.

This spring 60s style can also be spotted on accessories. Impressive colour combinations and geometrical designs lead the way in this trend. Like this two-coloured octagonal bracelet or the white and beige bracelet.

Ethnic accessories are must-haves for the hot weather. Wooden bracelets never go out of fashion. You can get large ones with carvings or drawings.

And bracelets with small beads bring along sophistication and versatility. Black is the most popular colour, either combined with gold to represent flowers, or with earth and green shades forming leaves.

Metallic bracelets, especially in silver, are also a must in your jewellery collection. I love this one with several intricate bracelets joined with a ring. And also this cuff with metallic shells and snail shells: it’s great for a top to toe look in black.